Will Brazil’s record of 20 straight undefeated starts be ended by Morocco?

Brazil has a very terrifying record: since 1938, in the past 20 World Cup opening matches, Brazil has 17 wins and 3 draws to stay undefeated, with a win rate of 85%. This record spans 86 years, witnessing the evolution of Brazilian football from the Pelé era to the Ronaldo era and then to the Neymar era. Morocco wants to be the team that ends this record—just how difficult that will be is evident.

But records are made to be broken. Morocco has already proven that they are not afraid of strong teams. In the last World Cup, they knocked out Spain and Portugal one after another. In the quarterfinals, they dealt with Portugal so effectively that Portugal had no way to do anything. In the semifinals, they also only narrowly lost to France. Facing big-game moments, these Moroccan players are already accustomed to it. They won’t go weak just because the opponent is Brazil.

By contrast, Brazil has not won a World Cup title in 24 years—this is the longest title drought in the team’s history. The pressure to win and the pressure of the record overlapping together; whether young players can bear it is a big question mark. Moreover, Brazil’s record in the World Cup qualifiers, where they finished fifth, has already driven external expectations for them down to the lowest point in history. In a certain sense, is the pressure actually on Morocco? No—the pressure is still on Brazil. If Morocco loses, that’s “normal”; if they win, that’s an “upset”—they have no burden.

Brazil’s record looks unbreakable, but records will end one day. If Morocco can score first in the match and force Brazil into a desperate situation, then whether the record can continue is really hard to say. With Neymar absent and Vinicius still needing to prove himself in the national team, who will Brazil rely on to turn things around? That’s the biggest question mark in my mind.

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